Community coordinator

Location

Philadelphia, PA | United States

Job description

At CORA Good Shepherd Mediation, we aim to encourage peace, reconciliation, and social justice by equipping communities with the tools to transform cycles of conflict and harm as an alternative to the legal system. Our Restorative Justice department offers a range of programs designed to respond to systemic and interpersonal violence, including circle process, victim-offender conferencing, youth diversion models, peer mediation trainings, and other forms of restorative justice education.

Our newest program, the Transforming Justice Hub (TJH) seeks to empower Philadelphian youth, who are both impacted by and at risk of involvement with neighborhood gun violence, to interrupt cycles of conflict, and the systems of oppression that cause them, through community organizing and community dialogue.

In service of this mission, the hub will host a recurring six-month Popular Education course that trains youth, in neighborhoods most familiar with the conditions of gun violence, to become certified circle keepers, peer mediators, and community organizers. The course consists of 30 hours of facilitation training, 20 hours of political education, and 6 hours of hands-on practice leading restorative justice models. The second component of this program is to engage youth in opportunities to apply the tools they gain through the course. Youth apprentices will be connected to ongoing movements that are pursuing racial and economic justice in Philadelphia as a pathway to engage as community organizers. Youth apprentices will also be invited to partner with our trained staff as co-facilitators of the restorative justice services that CORA Good Shepherd Mediation provides, including de-escalation and healing circles, to impacted individuals in their neighborhoods and to our community at large.

The Hub was designed with the understanding that gun violence, and other forms of interpersonal violence, are a symptom of the material conditions that marginalized communities are subject to, and that "those closest to the 'problem' are closest to the solution". We seek staff who share this analysis and can engage those at the epicenter of our gun violence epidemic to be leaders and experts in this movement.

• Manage and sustain TJH partnerships and relationships by being the first point of contact for referrals and inquiries.
• Alongside the TJH team, explore and develop opportunities to connect with local community leaders and organizers that will provide referrals for participant recruitment and opportunities for youth to get connected with ongoing social movements in Philadelphia.
• Plan and manage youth participant recruitment and community events.
• Conduct trauma-informed case management for clients to which CORA GSM is providing restorative processes.
• Maintain important records, schedules, and data for TJH program management.
• Provide key administrative assistance to all aspects of the program.
• Available to work on a flexible schedule; some days will require in-person support of programs that end later than 5pm. Starting hours will be adjusted to retain an 8-hour day in these cases.

Educational Qualifications

• A combination of education, training, and experience relevant to community partnership development, administrative assistance, restorative/transformative justice, and community organizing.

Experience/Knowledge/Skill Qualifications

• Minimum of 4 years of experience with office administration systems and procedures.
• Minimum of 1 year of experience with community organizing and/or outreach.
• Minimum of 1 year of experience with trauma-informed practices.
• Experience working with youth.
• Excellent relationship-building skills.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including ability to lead presentations in public forums.
• Ability to work proficiently in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook and Zoom; Ability to learn and use new technology tools.
• Demonstrated understanding and commitment to racial justice, economic justice, disability justice, and gender liberation, with the ability to develop supportive and trusting relationships with people directly impacted by these issues.
• Demonstrated understanding of the systemic causes of gun violence within marginalized communities.
• Candidates with lived experience and direct knowledge of the issues this project seeks to address are preferred.

Interested applicants should submit a resume along with a cover letter detailing why they think The Transforming Justice Hub is valuable to Philadelphia and why they would make a valuable member of our team.

In addition to submitting your application via the CORA Services website, please email a cover letter and resume to Pascal Cristofalo, the Transforming Justice Hub Program Manager, at  [email protected] with  Application: TJH Community Coordinator as the subject line. Applicants who do not provide a cover letter will not be considered.

CORA Services Inc. provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religious creed, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. People of color, longtime Philadelphians, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and people with historically marginalized identities are strongly encouraged to apply.

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